Conducted Electrical Weapon (CEW) Outside Carrier

ABSTRACT

By attaching an outside carrier to the already existing CEW and its holster, a temporary containment sight is created that allows for a single officer to use both hands while still energizing the CEW during handcuffing. This solves a serious officer safety hazard for solitary officers deploying CEW&#39;s.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

As a Police Officer I am trained in the use of Conducted Electrical Weapons (CEW) as a non-lethal weapon for subduing offenders for subsequent arrest. The most commonly used CEW's or ECD's (Electronic Control Device) on the market utilize a holster system similar to a handgun holster for its containment when not deployed. The safest and most recommended technique for deployment of the CEW involves a two officer component. One officer deploys the CEW on an offender. The probes from the CEW are attached to the CEW and conduct an electrical charge to incapacitate the offender when the two probes hit the target. Wires attached to the probes run back to the CEW, and must remain intact. At this time a second officer comes in to physically handcuff the offender while the CEW is “under power”, which means that electricity is running from the CEW to the probes, incapacitating the suspect. While “under power” the CEW must remain out of the holster so that the electrical wires can conduct electricity to the probes. While the subject is being incapacitated with the CEW under power, the second officer handcuffs the subject. This decreases the risk of the subjects pulling out probes and running away or fighting further. This works well with two officers, but a major problem arises when there is only one officer.

Without a secondary officer, it is impossible to maintain the CEW out of the holster, fire the CEW, and then simultaneously handcuff the subject “under power”. Handcuffing requires the officer to use both hands by first getting the subject into handcuffing position, second removing his handcuffs from the case, and third applying the handcuffs to the subject. Currently, the problems with a CEW in the holster when it is needed to be fired are the following: 1) The trigger is now shielded by the holster, making it un-useable to fire an electrical charge. 2) The probe wires would be crammed into the bottom of the holster getting crossed and/or broken and 3) the officer is at risk of electrocuting themselves.

My simple invention (CEW Outside Carrier) allows a single officer to deploy a CEW, maintain control of CEW on the outside of the holster, allows the officer to handcuff the subject with both hands, but still able to re-deploy an electrical charge to the subject if warranted in a secure fashion.

DESCRIPTIONS OF DRAWING VIEWS

1(A) Inside view of CEW with hook-and-loop fastener attached.

1(B) Outside view of CEW holster with hook-and-loop fastener attached.

1(C) Front view of CEW attached to outside of holster with hook-and-loop fastener.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION

Utilizing a thin plastic/metal/rubber clip, buckle, hook-and-loop fastener, or other product; the outside portion of the holster for the CEW is engineered to accommodate a mechanism attached/bonded/sewed to the inside handle and body of the CEW. A simple example is the attachment of the hook portion of a hook-and-loop fastener, bonded or otherwise secured to the CEW (FIG. 1C). The outside of the holster is then secured in the loop portion of the holster to hook portion on the CEW. An attachment of buckles, clips, pegs, or sheaths is also a plausible for this attachment. The attachment must allow for the probe end of the CEW to remain open for the conduction of electricity to the target. It must also allow for the trigger to be accessed for the re-energizing of the CEW circuit if another cycle of energy is required to subdue the subject. The mechanism also must be simple enough to require only gross motor skills. 

1. My invention is the placement of a CEW containment mechanism on the outside of the normal CEW holster. While I have identified materials that can be used for this device, the actual invention is not necessarily the materials or even the specific design. The materials and design of the containment can be varied. The invention is the idea of using the normal CEW holster as a platform for a containment system to be engineered on the outside of the holster and the CEW. This provides a temporary containment location for the CEW on the outside of the holster, This then solves the problem for a single police officer to deploy the CEW while simultaneously using his or her hands for the actual handcuffing of a subject. 